by Gwynn White
Swords unleashed, he completed the roll and sprang back to his feet. Nothing. There was nobody there. But something had clearly gone on the attack. Mists of dust rose from the freshly made dent in the ground. His eyes scanned the area, searching for even the slightest movement. His senses screamed again, sending him rolling forward once more. With a hollow thud a second crater formed exactly like the first. But this time Owen spun back, slashing his blade just above the indented soil.
Feeling resistance shudder through his weapon all the way up to the hilt, he heard a growl of pain. In a blink of light, a massive humanoid shape took form for an instant before winking out. Owen slashed the air wildly, hoping to get lucky a second time. After a few seconds of slicing air, he stopped.
Sidestepping across the area, he closed his eyes. They were useless now. Best to concentrate on his other senses. He listened carefully, reaching out with his mind. Birds chirped in the distance as the wind whistled through the treetops. It was here somewhere, he just needed it to slip up and give away its location. He just needed it to...
There! He whirled about, eyes opening as he kicked dirt towards the subtle sound of crackling grass underfoot. For an instant the outline of two legs and a torso formed, revealed within the dry cloud. The hunter lashed out like like a snake, his blades biting hard into the massive leg. The beast howled, its massive body blinking in and out of visibility. Whatever force was keeping it invisible could apparently be disrupted, if only for an instant.
Not wanting to lose track of it again, Owen burst into an offensive flurry. His blades flashed over and over as he pressed his attack. Sometimes he missed, sometimes he connected, but the strikes that rang true made the creature’s body flash in and out. Deep gashes began to form, leaving telltale signs of wounded flesh that seemed to float in the air. The damage was done and it could no longer hide from him.
Knowing it had permanently lost its advantage, the klashton countered furiously. Bloody fists flailed wildly. The skilled warrior ducked and rolled as needed, easily outmaneuvering the slow but powerful giant. After a final roll, the hunter spun back and slashed across the beast’s already wounded knee. It roared, blood pumping from the wide-open gash. Steel flashed across its neck, turning its roaring cry into a whimpering gurgle. It fell back, lifeless black eyes staring up vacantly at nothing.
Hands dropping to his knees, the hunter attempted to catch his breath. Where had that thing come from, and how was it invisible? Senses screaming once more, he glanced up, instinctually twisting to the side in an attempt to dodge an unseen blow. Too slow... Something solid crashed into his shoulder, sending him flying into a nearby tree. Severely shaken, he crumpled to the ground from the jarring blow. He struggled back up to one knee, his whole right side on fire. Dislocated at the shoulder, his arm hung limply.
The hunter shook his head, trying to clear his mind after the heavy blow that nearly rendered him unconscious. His head was full of cotton, ears whistling with a sustained shrill note. Everything seemed to spin. Don’t black out. Keep it together!
With long, labored breaths coming heavy and slow, his eyes scanned once more. He glanced at the spot he had just been standing before getting hit. Sure enough, there were large footprints sunk into the dirt. He watched them, searching to see if there was a trail leading away. The soil around one of the footprints shifted slightly, suddenly deepening on one side. He’s still standing there!
Owen growled, gripping his damaged arm just above the elbow. With a sickly crunch, he pushed it back into place. His blades lost somewhere during the impact, he was now weaponless and wouldn’t have time to search for them. There would only be one shot at this.
The warrior surged, charging at the footprints with all the speed and power he could muster. Crashing into the invisible mass, his feet kept churning, driving forward with impossible strength. The giant’s body flickered in his arms as they crashed to the ground. Maintaining top position, the hunter drove his fists down again and again. The roaring beast’s face rocked left and right, already starting to crack from the thunderous blows. No human hands should have been able to do such a thing, but the hunter’s fists continued to rain down like hammers.
Rock-hard flesh now beginning to soften from the pummeling, Owen began dropping elbows onto what was left of its face. Again and again his forearm drove home, the shattered facial structure providing all the resistance of a wet pillow. Winding up to unleash another, his arm caught in the air, wrist halted by an unseen force. “He’s dead, master,” came the familiar voice.
Breathing hard, Owen glanced back to see his apprentice standing there. Then he looked down at the distorted mushy pile that was once a klashton’s face. “Aye,” he agreed, getting off the massive body. “How long do you think it’ll be before they notice we killed all their little beasties?” Just then, a murderous wail echoed through the forest.
“Not long,” Xavier said, glancing up towards the direction of that guttural scream. “We better get ready for the next wave.”
Owen found his swords and slipped them back into their sheaths. The forest beyond seemed to come to life. Blurs of movement zipped back and forth while swirling funnels of black whirled around in the treetops. These were not klashtons or even a small scouting party. The laberaths had committed their remaining forces and were coming to finish the job.
Owen rolled his shoulders, sending his crossbows clacking down from the back of his shoulders. Latching to his wrists, he raised them towards the charging enemy. “Are you ready, lad?” he asked, a stony look on his face. Xavier only nodded in response, blades already in hand. Owen lifted his crossbows straight up, pointing them up to the sky. “Here we go!” he yelled, releasing a blaze of flaring orange energy.
“I see the signal!” Viola called down from her perch up on the platform. Liam turned, silently pointing to what appeared to be an unassuming row of trees. On command, the sound of tightened bowstrings creaked. He pointed to a second line of trees, which produced a similar sound of readying bows.
“This is your home!” he boomed, looking every bit the part of a military commander. “These vile beasts think to destroy your village, and peel the very flesh from your bones. They dare to threaten the lives of you and your families. Show these vile creatures what the tarrins are capable of! Send them crawling back to the dark depths from which they slithered! Loose!”
Bows snapped in unison, cutting the air like thunder. A torrent of arrows whistled through the air, shading the ground below.
Laberaths materialized in the trees, black funnels reshaping back into their humanoid forms. Hearing a whistling hiss, they gazed up at the sky. A snapping sound rang through the forest as tarrin arrows rained down through the leaves. Laberaths clutched their chests, falling from the trees as their wounds instantly began sparkling with white glitter.
“Let’s go!” said Owen, snatching Xavier by the back of the collar. They had done everything they could here, and it was time to rejoin the strength of their main force. They ran through the forest, the wails of dying laberaths ringing out from behind as more waves of arrows snapped down through the trees.
Dagger in hand, Viola stepped out onto the platform. She watched Liam down below, waving his hands about in silent signals. Wave after wave of arrows snapped off, gliding through the air to bring their promise of death to the enemy. Off in the distance, she could see the tiny flares of sparkling white light, the telltale sign of direct hits taking their toll. Terror gripped her. The sight of so much death at once rattled her to her bones. She held the dagger so tightly her hands began to shake.
A strong grip snatched the back of her shirt, causing her to fall and get dragged back inside. “What do you think you’re doing?” Assirra yelled, finally releasing the girl with a not-so-gentle shove.
“I want to help,” Viola replied. Although she meant it, the words sounded foolish, even to her own ears.
“You will do nothing of the sort!” Assirra shrieked, standing over her protectively. “Your only jo
b this day is to not get captured. Nothing else! You will not leave the temple again for any reason. Am I understood?” Viola wilted like a flower, dropping the dagger to the floor. She really did want to help, but what could she possibly do? “You shall hole up in here until this is over. I’ll say no more on the subject.” Assirra turned and slid a bookcase in front of the open doorway.
Liam watched the forest from the ground level while hearing the screams of the dying. Staff in hand, he held it high above his head. Bursting through the brush came Owen and Xavier, both sprinting as fast as they could. “They’re behind us!” Owen yelled, nearly falling down at Liam’s feet.
“Yes, I’m aware,” Liam replied dryly. “And it is here we must make our stand. They must not break through this line.” He began twirling the staff above his head, eyes rolling back while muttering words in a guttural, alien language.
“I guess it’s the three of us,” Owen groaned, rolling his shoulders. His crossbows clacked down, automatically fastening around his wrists.
“Four!” came a call from above. Bypassing the steps in a single leap, Thatra leapt down from the platform above. Landing softly like a cat, she twirled a metal staff around her back, hardened muscles twitching from her shoulders to her abs. “Viola is with Assirra. We must defend the temple at all costs.”
“Their ranks have been significantly thinned,” said Xavier, turning his head towards the growing commotion heading their way. “But there are still plenty left.” The forest seemed to come alive with movement, blurs of movement zipping back and forth, spirals of black whirling from branch to branch.
Liam’s mumbling intensified, the last words roaring off his tongue like thunder. Slamming the butt of his staff into the ground, there came a boom with no sound, an energy felt but not heard. Like creeping death, the invisible rings of power radiated outward like a tidal wave of force. Laberath bodies came into plain view, as if the trees had all suddenly disappeared. They glowed a dark red for an instant before seeming to vanish once more behind the thickness of the forest.
“There,” said Liam, stumbling forward a step. “I cannot slow time in so large an area, but I can slow their physical bodies temporarily. They will still be faster than us, but the difference will no longer be so extreme.”
“How long will the enchantment hold?” asked Thatra as she eyed the first wave approaching.
“Not nearly long enough,” Liam replied, lowering his goat-head staff towards the first threat breaking through the tree line. Uttering a single word, a head-sized ball of flame burst from the tip of the staff. Unable to dodge, the laberath’s body was instantly engulfed in fire. Seared flesh blackened to a crisp, the creature was dead before it ever hit the ground. Others broke through the trees, leaping right over the charred corpse.
“Stand back!” Owen ordered, stepping forward with his crossbows raised. A blinding spray of orange energy made short work of them, as well as most of the trees in the immediate area. He swept back and forth, wildly unleashing the weapons’ energy. When they were spent and the gems ejected, he drew his silver blades and moved to the flank.
They had already done their part, and Liam had no intention of asking for more. The tarrins could have stayed hidden had they chosen to, but didn’t. Awkwardly clutching swords as if they were shovels, they emerged from trees and bushes to join in the fray. Blinding rage overriding their lack of weapons proficiency, the tarrins began circling the boxa tree, swinging wildly at anything that moved. They refused to be viewed as cowards in the eyes of these human strangers not afraid to take a stand, let alone in the eyes of their own families.
Thatra and Xavier moved to the east side to defend. Xavier’s blades whirled around him, covering so much killing distance that Thatra found herself of little use so near the assassin. She shifted back to the front, her staff whirling defensively to keep the creatures off Liam so he could cast his next spell. The teamwork paid off initially. The laberaths’ most advantageous physical gift had already been subdued, and they weren’t skilled warriors to begin with.
“Who wants a piece of me?” Owen boomed, his silver blades shredding and slicing, reducing laberaths to shimmering pools of liquid white. “I can do this all day! I can—” His gaze drifted up to the sky. “Oh no... No!” One by one the others looked up, eyes wide with horror. With a whooshing sound, multi-winged hydrogriphs went soaring overhead. Like dry snow, white ash began to fall from the sky...
Liam opened his hand, allowing bits of fluffy soft ash to collect in his palm. With saddened eyes, he glanced at Owen. “Get out of here,” he said, turning over his hand so the ash flittered to the ground. The sounds of clashing steel steel rang out all around them, yet he seemed to hardly notice.
“I’ll do no such thing,” the hunter replied, shaking his head. “We’re in this together.”
“Your steel is useless here,” Liam pressed, just before raising his staff to intercept a falling blade. With the speed of a skilled soldier, he quickly rotated his staff, catching the laberath in the lower jaw. Collapsing, the stunned creature screeched as the butt end of the staff dropped into his chest. Liam muttered a single word and the creature’s body burst into flame. “You must get Viola and go,” he went on as if the minor kill was barely a distraction. “The ghatins are coming. I will do all in my power to buy you time. If you and Xavier stay, death is all that awaits you.”
Owen stepped towards the mystic, clasping a hand over his shoulder. “Very well,” he said reluctantly. “But once she’s safe we’re coming back for you!”
Liam smiled at the white lie, even if Owen didn’t think it was at the time.
“Xavier!” Owen called, watching his apprentice’s blades shred two more laberaths. “Follow me.”
“But—”
“No buts! Viola is in danger.” Xavier jumped at that, racing after his master.
Feeling overconfident, a pair of tarrin brothers slashed their way away from the protective numbers near the boxa tree. The enemies seemed to be thinning; whether that was from retreat or simply death remained unclear. Swords at the ready, they raced towards one who seemed to be hiding behind a bush.
Rushing around the bush, they charged him from opposite sides. The laberath jumped up and whirled about, his steel flashing in one clean stroke. Severed, both their hands dropped to the ground. One screamed, glaring at his stump as blood pumped from the perfect cut. The other dropped to his knees, shock quickly setting in.
Orm’rak grabbed the neck of the one still on his feet. “Where are they hiding the girl?” he asked calmly. Trembling, the tarrin revealed his silent answer by glancing back towards the temple high in the boxa tree. Orm’rak grinned. “Thank you,” he said, before squeezing his victim’s neck with only one hand. With a crackling snap, the tarrin’s eyes bulged and crossed before Orm’rak dropped him to the ground.
Leaping into the air, his body whirled into a black funnel of squawking birds, reforming when he reached the temple’s platform.
Racing up the steps, Owen had seen the spinning black funnel drift overhead. “Move, lad!” he called behind him. “They know where she is!”
Orm’rak smashed through the wooden barricade, splintered chips of wood spraying everywhere. Assirra shrieked, turning to run from the room. White-hot pain exploded through the back of her shoulder, a blade tip now protruding through the front. “Where is she?” Orm’rak asked, the calm in his voice chilling. When she didn’t answer he twisted the blade, lifting the hilt to drive her face down to the floor. She covered her mouth to stifle the inevitable scream of pain. “I will not ask you again.” He glanced up as a figure rushed out from behind a chair. He ripped the blade free, sending Assirra spinning across the floor.
“Viola, run!” Assirra screamed, her head spinning with nausea as her clothes darkened with flowing blood.
Shrieking in terror, Viola leapt out the widow and onto the outer platform. Leaping off the edge, she whirled about in midair, spinning into a living tornado of black. Setting down on the gro
und, her terror redoubled when she took in the scene around her. Bodies were scattered everywhere as the battle ensued. Steel clashed and screams filled the air. She glanced up, seeing a second black funnel descending towards her. With no hesitation she ran into the forest.
Liam saw her land then run off while another laberath gave chase. Seconds later, he was relieved to see Owen and Xavier giving chase into the forest. But there was nothing he could do to help. He needed to remain here and buy as much time as he could before... He gazed off in the distance, his eyes spotting what he was waiting for. From far away, large white giants with pink eyes glared back at him. Even from here he could feel their hate. Like melting candles, they seeped down into white ash.
“Very well then,” he muttered, raising his staff over his head. “If it is my life for hers then so be it. Sparing her means millions of lives saved, where mine alone means nothing. A small price to pay indeed. There is nothing to consider.”
Alien words dripped from his lips in sounds that no human should be able to formulate. White waves raced towards him, the speeding bulges in the ground throwing tarrin bodies into the air as they approached. Recognizing him as the only real threat, they converged and sprung from the ground. Faces contorted, mouths gaping open like white serpents, they washed over him just as his staff slammed the ground.
There came another boom with no sound, a deep bass that seemed to rattle the planet. The ash around him crystallized, the effects spreading outward. Like a ripple from a pebble thrown in water, the crystallizing wave coated the white men, working its way back through the forest. Frozen like fossils, ghatin faces glared down at him from only inches away. Liam stumbled back, his head swimming from the power it took to cast such a spell. He sat on the ground gazing up at those twisted faces, knowing that all he’d managed to do was buy a little more time.
